Forbidden
by Maoriel
Summary: She knows that it's wrong, to be obsessed with the enemy of the Empire, enemy of her father. But she's the future empress, she takes what she wants and she wants that man. In other words, an AU where Anakin is the leader of the rebellion, Padme is Palpatine's adopted daughter and she's crushing hard on the arch nemesis of her father.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I don't own Star Wars, I just like messing around.**

 **A/N: Before someone lashes out, that Padme is too dark or manipulative, let me explain that she's Palpatine's adoptive daughter since 10. She believes his beliefs (at least, most of them), because she was taught so. Also, Ani is five years older than her for reasons.**

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If someone saw her watching holovid with her mouth slightly open and her brown eyes wide, she would say that she was horrified by the cruelness of the leader of rebellion. The Twi'lek woman gave her watchers an explicit description of how the savage Jedi conquered planet after planet, bringing desperation and misery to its population.

But her words would be lies. Padmé wasn't horrified. She was mesmerized, amazed by this mysterious man. As she watched how the arch enemy of the Empire, Anakin Skywalker lashed out at the Stormtroopers, she only saw how powerful, graceful he was, moving between his enemies more like a dancer than the brutal warrior, as the holovid portrayed him.

It was wrong, being obsessed with the enemy of the Empire, the enemy of her father. Ten years ago, as her father received the title of the Emperor of The Galaxy, the Jedi betrayed him and started a rebellion. After years, almost all Jedi were dead, except three of them: Grandmaster Yoda, who was living legend among the Jedi, Master Obi-Wan Kenobi, who raised the current leader of the rebellion and Anakin Skywalker, the mentioned leader of the rebellion, the poster child of the Jedi and currently, an object of Padme Palpatine's obsessions.

Padmé huffed in exasperation. Her father taught her, that if she wanted something, she needed to fight for it. She was the heiress of the Empire, she could achive everything she wanted. Well, except certain blue-eyed blond Jedi.

"Milady?" Dormé's voice rang in her room and Padmé quickly turned her holovid off. "Milady, are you decent?"

"Yes, yes." Padmé answered and instinctively combed her thick brown hair with her fingers. "You may come in."

The black door opened and her handmaiden's face appeared. She timidly smiled at her mistress and walked into the room.

"Milady, your father wishes to see you."

"In his cabinet?" Padmé asked warily.

"No, Milady, in the conference room."

Padmé grimaced. Meeting her father in the conference room meant meeting someone important (If her father really wanted to see her, he would come in her room or summon in his cabinet) and meeting someone important meant changing her clothes and redoing her hair and makeup.

"Did he mention why?" The heiress of the Empire asked as she gestured her handmaiden to help her in changing clothes.

"I'm afraid no, Milady." Dormé answered as she buckled the silver buckles of Padmé's blue dress.

"Did you see his expression?"

"Yes, Milady, I should mention, I never saw His Excellency that happy."

Padmé stopped searching the matching necklace for her dress and turned around, staring at her handmaiden curiously.

"Happy?"

"Yes, Your Highness, he even smiled."

Her father smiled? Huh, that was interesting. Padmé felt how her curiosity increased.

"Very well, let's see why the Emperor summoned me."

"But, Milady, we haven't done your hair." Dormé protested and Padmé impatiently waved.

"It's fine. I don't have a messy pile of hair on my head so I won't offend our guest."

Dormé opened her mouth to protest again, but quickly closed as she remembered who she was talking to. So she just nodded and opened the door for her mistress.

Thankfully, the conference room was close to Padmé's resting chambers. As she walked into the hall, she double checked her father's face. Dormé was right, Emperor Palpatine was indeed happy.

"Padmé, my dear," Her father greeted her." It's so nice to see you." He even opened his arms to embrace her.

"Father," Padmé smiled at him. "You wanted to see me?"

"Always blunt." Her father giggled and Padmé almost collapsed on the floor. Her father never laughed. Sometimes, when they received particularly pleasant news, he cackled, but She never heard him laughing, especially, giggling. "But, yes, my dear, I wanted to see you. We have a special guest."

"Oh, really?" Padmé managed to say. "So, who is our guest?"

"Oh, yes, how rude of me to keep you waiting. Guards." He called out. "Let our precious guest in."

Two Stormtroopers opened the double door and Padmé grasped Dormé's arm, because as her eyes met the stern face of Anakin Skywalker, she knew, that she was close to fall on the floor by the weakness she felt at her knees.

"Padmé, dear, let me introduce our precious guest to you, the great Anakin Skywalker."

"Pleased to meet you." Padmé mumbled and Skywalker's blue eyes quickly landed on her. She sucked a breath. _Kriff_ , that man was gorgeous.

"What a shame that I can't say same." He spat and quickly glanced at her father. "Will you cut this farce, Palpatine? I don't have time to listen to your pretty words."

Her father arched an eyebrow.

"Oh, so you don't have time? Care to tell me where you plan to go with those cuffs?" At his words, Padmé finally managed to stop ogling the face of her father's prisoner and look at the other parts of his body. Her eyebrows furrowed as she discovered brown strains of dried blood on his tunic. His hands were bound together and there was a Force-cutting collar on his neck.

"To my people as soon as I'll be free from your clutches." The leader of the rebellion declared smugly.

"What a confidence you have, my boy." Skywalker flushed from the anger as her father said those words. "Why are you so sure that I'll leave you alive?"

"Oh, come on, Sheev." Now it was her father's turn to flush from the rage. "Don't you feel the temptation? To turn me to the Dark side?"

"No longer I wish that." Palpatine spat and raised his hand. Padmé paled. She knew that gesture. It meant Force Lightning and Force Lightning meant death. She wasn't ready to see Skywalker's death. What about achieving her dreams? This man was her dream. Well, along with ruling the whole galaxy.

"Father, wait." She spoke and surprised herself by the boldness and calmness of her voice as doubts and wants churned in her stomach.

Palpatine's yellow eyes dangerously flicked.

"Care to say something, _Dear_?" He asked in a low voice and Padmé read the threat in his words. Would she speak again and she'd end up on the cold stiff corpse of Skywalker. A smart person would shut its mouth, but not Padmé. She was the heiress of the throne of whole empire, for the Force's sake and she would take what she wanted, when she wanted and from whom she wanted. She just needed to choose her words carefully.

"Father, think." Padmé muttered, her eyes never leaving the expressionless face of Anakin Skywalker. "If you kill him now, he will be some kind of martyr for the rebels. More people will be blinded by it. More people become traitors."

Skywalker's expressionless face changed into a disgusted one.

"And?" Palpatine prompted. "What are you suggesting? Leave him alive and wait until his shameless friends come to save him?"

"Give him to me." Padmé answered and again, she was surprised by her boldness. Mentally she gave herself a thousandth slap in the face.

"And care to tell me, why I should do that?"

"Let me break him." Padmé practically begged. "He's the spirit of this Force- forsaken rebellion. By breaking him, we'll break the rebellion."

Palpatine lowered his hand as he considered her words. After two minutes of thinking he sighed.

"Very well," He decided. "But you remember how I abhor failure, my dear. Do not disappoint me." He stressed the last phrase and again, Padmé read the threat and danger in his words. If she failed, she would end up in the darkest dungeon of the palace or her father would personally electrocute her. So she just smiled and planted a feather-light kiss on his withered cheek.

"Don't you worry, Father," She assured him. "I won't."


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I don't own Star Wars, I just like messing around.**

 **A/N: Oh, you guys are awesome. To be honest, I didn't expect if someone would read or appreciate this fic, but well, what can I say. I'm glad that you like darker Padme, I mean I'm sucker for Vadme fics, but since I like to reverse, twist and mess everything, I decided to reverse their roles, where Anakin is beacon in her darkness or something like that.**

 **Also, don't you worry about the rating. At first, I wanted to keep T, but then I realized that I plan to write torture and smut in future chapters, so I stop skirting around and change the rating now from T to M.**

 **And finally, for updates, I'll have exams now, but I'll try to update every time I can.**

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"So?" One blond eyebrow rose. "What am I now? Your pet?" His lips curled into a sneer. "Your slave?"

Padmé shrugged.

"Call yourself whatever helps you sleep at night. Doesn't matter for me." She said nonchalantly and eyed him with a frown stretched across her face. He was dirty, sweaty, smelly and awfully skinny. Nothing like the graceful Jedi the holovids portrayed him. Apparently, a week in Emperor Palpatine's cell can change you from a terrifying warrior into the starved slave from Tatooine.

He noticed her brown eyes on his body and shifted uncomfortably. Padmé licked her lip. So, the Hero with No Fear didn't like when someone stared at him. Well, sadly for him, it was what Padmé was going to do in future days. ' _Hopefully, more than ogling_ '.

Skywalker crossed his hands over his chest defensively.

"So, are you going to do something, or will you stare at me an entire day?"

She gave him a sinister smirk.

"Are you uncomfortable, _Anakin?"_ His name naturally rolled on her tongue. She could get used of saying and hopefully, screaming his name.

"Don't you dare to use my name." He snarled and gave her a dirty look. "So, will you spend a whole day in gawking at me or will you do something fruitful? Like torturing me?"

Padmé waved her hand dismissively. As much as she would like to give him a snide remark about him being kinky, she knew it would only anger him and she didn't need his anger. Not now.

"Torturing you would be meaningless." She answered easily. "I saw how my father uselessly tried to snatch some information from the Jedi with torturing him. You can't break a proper Jedi with a physical torture."

"You can't break us with mental torture too." Anakin declared proudly. "For a mental torture you need an attachment."

"Everyone has an attachment." Padmé argued.

"Not Jedi. You should do your homework properly, Your Highness."

"It's _Mistress_ for you, besides, I'm tired of arguing with you. Go to 'fresher and clean yourself. My whole chamber smells awfully because of you."

He gave her a dirty look.

"Well, I'm not tired. Care to explain what are you going to do to me? You know it's my life we're talking about."

Padme channeled all her inner royal sternness as she looked him in his eyes. To be honest, she didn't know what she was going to do him. It would take a lot of torturing, beating and starving to break a Jedi, especially, a Jedi like Anakin Skywalker, who was some kind of Messiah for rebels. The few Jedi, who her father tortured for the information, labeled him as ' _Chosen One_ '. That sounded quite grand in Padme's opinion. Maybe that was another reason why she wanted him so much.

Torturing was out of her options. It demanded a lot of time. Besides, it would leave her dear rebel all battered and bruised and she didn't want that. She wanted him healthy, with all his fire in his eyes and lust in his heart.

Yeah, Padmé Palpatine was quite ambitious woman, sue her.

"It doesn't concern you. Now, go and shower. Dormé prepared clean clothes for you. If you need something, call Artoo."

He cocked an eyebrow.

"Who is Artoo?"

"What." She corrected. "Artoo is my astromech droid. It will help you if you need something. Now, get in the shower. I'm going to see my father. You will be in my room for the entire day. Do whatever you want. Sleep if you want. If you're hungry, comm the palace kitchen and request dinner for you. Don't you dare to leave this room and put some bacta on your back. You're bleeding again and making mess on my floor."

"Care to explain to me how the Sith's hell can I put bacta on my back?" He snarled. "Do you see another pair of hands on it?"

"I do not care about that." She snapped. "Just do what I ordered to you."

The Jedi gave her a challenging look.

"Or?"

"Or your wounds will get infected. Look," She rubbed her temples, "I don't demand something sinister for you like killing a group of younglings. The only thing I'm asking from you is to take care of yourself while I'm gone."

Cerulean eyes narrowed.

"I'll see what I can do."

Padmé exhaled in exasperation.

"Great. Now," She commed her faithful droid, "Artoo, come in my room. I'll need you here while I'm gone to see my father."

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Her father practically radiated satisfaction as she walked into the conference room. He was talking to Grand Moff Tarkin as he saw her. A wide smile stretched on his lips.

"Padmé, dear," He purred, "How nice of you to coming here. Come, sit next to me. Grand Moff was saying something to me."

Padmé politely bowed at Tarkin and sat on the chair next to the Emperor's throne. She carefully observed Tarkins face. Apparently, he wasn't sharing her father's excitement.

"...Unfortunately, imprisoning their leader only angered the rebels." He was saying. " Alderaan openly joined them."

"So they stopped hiding their treachery." Palpatine replied. "And?"

The Grand Moff gave her father an incredulous look before he remembered who he was talking to and schooled his features into an expressionless one. Padmé hid her smile. Tarkin always amused her, hiding his treacherous nature from them as well as he could, but both her and her father knew what a dirty liar and suck up he was and how he planned to destroy both royals and usurp their throne.

"Your Excellency, I think, you underestimate their strength and power." He squeaked before he realized what he said and bit his tongue. "I mean, we don't have a planet to lose to the rebellion, My Lord. With that Sith's Spawn Ahsoka Tano, they're destroying our army garrison after garrison. Even if we have their leader, they aren't surrendering. "

Her father cackled.

"My dear Tarkin, every time I feel wonderful, you only increase my amusement." The Grand Moff reddened from the anger and narrowed his eyes. Padme knew if her father had a lesser position and was lesser powerful, Tarkin would lean forward and strangle him with his own hands. "What you were expecting, that they would drop their blasters and lightsabers and declare their loyalty?"

Tarkin flushed fifty shade redder from the humiliation. Padme pitied him and decided to give him a hand.

Kind of.

"What's your plan, Father?" She asked softly. "I know that even Master Skywalker's death won't end this meaningless war. So, what are you planning?"

Palpatine gave his adoptive daughter another smile.

"Do you remember what's our greatest ally, dear daughter?"

"Force." Padme answered without thinking, but her eyebrows furrowed. "Force declared you as the ruler of the galaxy and it's on our side, although the Jedi use the Force too, Father."

"The Dark Side of Force is our greatest ally, Padme and you know what leads to the Dark Side?"

"Hatred." Tarkin spoke, who was clearly annoyed by their riddles about the mysterious ways of the Force.

"Hatred leads to the Dark Side, anger leads to the hatred and fear leads to the anger. Fear is what keeps our people obedient and fear is what lets us to rule them. They're so many. Why aren't attacking us?"

"You're the Emperor. They're afraid of you."Padmé replied.

"I'm just an old man."

"An old man who has an army." Tarkin remarked and by the withering look Palpatine gave him, Padme supposed that wasn't Tarkin useful for her father, the Emperor would fry him with his Force Lightning millennials ago.

"The point is that," Palpatine continued. "As long as they're afraid, they're paralyzed, crippled by it. This is why Skywalker was a threat to us. Not because some crazy Jedi prophecy. That man knows no fear." He huffed.

Padme gave him a puzzled look.

"How are you going to plant more fear in the population of galaxy?"

The Emperor gifted her with another sinister smirk.

"What if I told you that I have a weapon that can blow up an entire planet?"

Tarkin scoffed.

"Forgive me, Your Excellency, but that's just impossible."

Her father's yellow eyes dangerously narrowed.

"Are you doubting or mocking me, Grand Moff Tarkin?"

Padmé quickly intervened in their conversation before Force-Lightning left her father's fingertips.

"I'm sure he isn't, Father. We're just bewildered. Does a weapon of that kind exist?"

Palpatine grimaced.

"Not yet, but soon, it will." His sickly yellow eyes trailed from the Governor to his adoptive daughter."Tarkin, you may leave us."

Tarkin grumbled something under his breath as he respectfully bowed at his Emperor and Heiress. The Emperor graced Padme with a twitch of his thin lips.

"So?" Palpatine started and shifted uncomfortably in his robes. The coarse material probably scratched his paper thin skin. Padmé always wondered why the Emperor never wore more expensive clothes. As a child she thought that it was because he wanted to appear as a just, plain man in the eye of the galaxy. But her father wasn't a man who would let a mere fabric to scratch his skin just to appear like a noble, kind man. Probably he had his reasons.

Her father coughed in his fist as he gazed at her. "Are you going to Senate today?"

Padme grimaced. She disliked working in the Senate. The Senators were arrogant, thinking that they had some power in the galaxy, when in reality, they were just her Father's pitiful pawns. Her father was the Senate, ruling everything as he wanted and liked. But having Senate kept the whole galaxy quiet and peaceful.

Senate was the reason why Palpatine adopted Padmé. He wanted someone clever, who would be his another pair of eyes and ears in the Senate as he fought against rebels (well, he didn't fight in the battlefield, but his mind was always occupied with strategies. He hadn't time for the whiny Senators). This was the reason why he sought a child (He needed someone who had a flexible mind), his heir and since Padmé was brightest in her peers, the Emperor decided that she would do it. Afraid that someone would try to snatch his throne from him, he personally raised Padmé and taught her almost everything he knew (except the Force. Unfortunately, Padmé wasn't forcesensitive, so she couldn't be trained as a Sith. She only knew about the Force what she needed). Well, joke's on him, because it was Padmé, who was planning to eliminate him and take the throne to herself.

Padmé reinforced her mental shields to keep her thoughts to herself. She knew that her father was capable to read thoughts. Although he didn't tell her about his every power, over the years she constantly observed him and discovered some things herself. She didn't need her father to find her rebellious plans too early.

"I don't think so." She told her father. "I want to spend my day observing our hostage."

His mouth quirked.

"Since you mentioned, dear, how's our young rebel?" His sickly yellow eyes carefully scrutinized her. Padme fought hard against her nausea. It would be disrespectful if she threw up over her father, who was by the way, the Emperor of the Galaxy too and who electrocuted and decapitated people for lesser reasons.

"He's doing fine, Father." The Heiress of throne replied. "I left Artoo with him."

Palpatine nodded. Padme guessed that he was satisfied with her answer.

"Good, is his room prepared?"

The Heiress mentally scowled. As much as she wanted Skywalker to spend his nights in her chamber, particularly in her bed, she knew her father would cut them both bit by bit if he heard about that. So, she ordered Dormé to prepare a room to him that was close to her bedchamber.

"Yes, Father." She answered stiffly.

Palpatine nodded again. Padmé stood and started walking from the conference room when her father called again.

"Try everything to turn him to us, My Dear." His golden eyes bled into acid yellow and Padme felt how chill ran down her spine. He was threatening her, she knew and she hated that it was working. She hated that she was afraid of him and she feared that this fear would cripple her plans of revolution.

Maybe this was why she was so enchanted with Anakin Skywalker, The Hero With No Feat, the man with no attachments. He had nothing to loose, nothing to fear.

She opened her bedroom's door and peered inside. Her precious hostage was sitting on her bed, wearing only the pants her handmaidens brought to him and carelessly tinkering Artoo. Padme cleared her throat and noticed how his marred back stiffened as he turned around. His blue eyes ice-cold and hard.

"You're here." He acknowledged her.

"I'm here."She confirmed. "And you aren't wearing shirt." Not that she was complaining.

He scowled at her.

"Couldn't bear it."

"I told you, you should apply bacta..."

"And I told you, I don't have another pairs of hands and eyes on my back." He snapped.

She exhaled and shook her head. She would never admit that he was right, so she started searching her first aid kit. Skywalker watched her with a confused look.

"What are you doing?"

"None of your concern." She grumbled as she found what she sought and sat behind him. He tried to stand up, but she grabbed his hand and scowled at him.

"Stay still."

"Are you going to put bacta on my back? Thanks, but no thanks."

"I don't need your gratitude. I'm not doing this for you." Padme lied. "If your wound get infected, Father will be disappointed. So, stay still and let me clean your back properly, or I'll use your collar." His collar was not only cutting him off from the Force temporary, but also could electrocute him. Padme doubted Skywalker fancied being electrocuted, if he wasn't mad or masochist.

She gingerly cleaned his wounds and dressed his wounds with bacta bandages. She admired how his back glistened golden in the daylight and how smooth it was around the whip slashes and she felt how tense he was under her fingertips. Padme carefully applied pressure on her fingertips as she massaged his broad shoulders.

"I feel your fear." She murmured. "You're frightened."

"A Jedi knows no fear." Anakin answered stiffly.

"I hear your anger in your voice." Padme continued. "I hear how fast your heart beats. Your blood is full of rage."

"A Jedi knows no anger." No doubt he quoted it from some Jedi textbook.

"I see your hatred in your eyes." She finished. "Why are you still fighting for the light side?"

He completely turned around. His cerulean eyes were cold and hard like two shards of the most expensive blue diamond.

"I'm a Jedi." He said, his voice as cool as the early morning of the winter. "I know no hatred."

Padme smirked. She always welcomed challenge.

"Maybe not yet." She purred. "But soon, you will."

* * *

 **Aaaand here's our Padme. She's acting like a spoiled brat, but soon her mood will darken. I should admit, as much as I like Padme and how kind and compassionate she is, I would welcome if she had some flaws. So, here, let me introduce my greedy, lusty, angry, manipulative (in future chapters), heartless cold child (She was Palpa's apprentice after all, so it's impossible to be his daughter and not adapt some bad habits. She still has good feelings, but it's buried deeply inside her.)**

 **At first, I wanted some passion in this chapter, like, my Inner Me asked me: "Were, if your were in bedchamber with shirtless Anakin Skywalker, what would you do?" and then my Another Me answered: "Well, of course I would pounce on him, but unlike me, Padme Palpatine isn't a horny teenager, she's a patient horny teenager and she knows, that pouncing on him would be meaningless." So, no, operation "STHAMAS (Seduce the High and Mighty Anakin Skywalker)" will be in later chapters.**

 **Thank you for your reviews and thanks for favoriting and following this story. Love y'all, Guys.**

 **~Weringale**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: Like I said in previous chapters, I don't own Star Wars, I just like messing around.**

 **A/N: I was meditating and the Force told me that I needed to get my poodoo together and write a new chapter. So, here I am.**

 **I'm very glad that you like this alternate Padme so much. For your questions, Padme's line** **"I don't demand something sinister for you like killing a group of younglings" was me being a little shit I am. I like dropping some Easter eggs here and there. Also, about our two precious babies – the plot is still forming and changing in my mind, so I don't know if I add them in this story. I may put them here just to piss off Palpatine.**

 **And now, enjoy the chapter.**

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Padmé pinched the bridge of her nose. Her migraine was killing her and she could do nothing, because apparently, gulping medication in the middle of reading some pitiful bill was offensive to the "holier than thou" Senators. It didn't help that the Senate was too noisy, too tiring, only intensifying her headache and nausea. So she was sitting in her Grand Vizier's chair and listening how the bunch of oafs yelled and argued about something that actually was meaningless. She toyed with the idea to order to decapitate their heads. Lesser Senators meant lesser headache. Unfortunately, her father would disapprove this act. As child, when she suggested about slaughtering of the Senate, her father always would shush her and mumble something about "maintaining the good image." Then little Padmé would think that he was just being silly, because Emperor Sheev Palpatine's image was ruined beyond repair for the people of whole galaxy since executing Order 66. Corrupted or not, the Jedi order was something that the people of galaxy worshiped and envisioned as their guardians against the evil of the universe. Naturally, their death made her father some kind of monster in their eyes. Maybe this was why Anakin Skywalker had so many supporters. The Last Jedi, like the narrators of holovid labeled him and all that boring Jedi stuff.

Padmé leaned backward as her thoughts traveled from strangling the squeaking Senator to the captured Jedi, who possessed sun kissed hair and smoldering blue eyes. She was obsessed with him since she became the ward of Emperor Palpatine and she could still remember the day as she, freshly whipped for disobeying, turned on her holovid with a sulking expression on her face as her med droid tended the wounds on her back. Her father ordered fourteen lashes as she dared to argue him and now her entire back felt like there was a wild fire burning on it. The worst thing was that she couldn't complain – her only companion was a droid without any personality (Dormé wasn't her handmaiden then), so all she could do was to press her lips in a thin line and fight her tears. Then, ten years old Padmé Palpatine decided that she wouldn't shed a tear even if her father skinned her alive.

Padmé brooded as she watched how the narrator ranted about the new sensation of the galaxy – sixteen years old boy who was leading the rebellion against her father. They even showed a footage where he was standing in the battlefield tall and proud with a determined expression on his youthful face. He raised his cerulean lightsaber and looked straight into the camera with his piercing bright blue eyes and promised the people of entire galaxy that he would fight until his last breath for their freedom.

Entire galaxy's freedom meant that she too would be free from the clutches of her father. There would be no more lashes and boring lectures. She would never see how her father tortured and killed his enemies with Force Lightning and other things. She and everyone would be safe from him.

And then and there, Padmé Palpatine decided that Anakin Skywalker was the man for her. After few years, she no longer received the whipping lessons, due learning how to close her mouth and keep her stubbornness to herself when she was talking to the _Great Emperor Sheev Palpatine_. But unlike her punishments, her little crush didn't vanish. It only grew into something greater, something like a twisted love. She even remained virgin, because no man except Anakin Skywalker was worthy to touch her. Of course, Padmé kept her thoughts to herself – if her father dearest heard something about her obsession, fourteen lashes would be pecks of the feather compared to his innovations in punishing people.

"Lady Padmé?"

Padme blinked and glanced at the Zabrak who was watching her with questioning eyes.

"Yes?"

"I asked what you thought about this bill." The woman said impatiently. Clearly, she only asked this for the formality – she wanted her bill to success as soon as possible. Padmé hid her smirk. Lesson number one, folks, don't even show your impatience in front of Padmé Palpatine – it only encourages her to tease (no tease was too weak word, more like torture) you.

"Well, I think that the information about this bill still isn't enough for me." The Heiress announced and gave the frowning Zabrak a bright smile. "Work more on your bill and we will talk about it after five days." When the Zabrak scowled Padme gazed at her, brown eyes full with mischief and challenge, like she dared the Senator to object her decision. The brown eyed woman leaned forward and gave the Zabrak her most pleasant smile. "Do you want to say something, Senator?"

The Zabrak scowled and Padmé's smile blossomed into a full grin. She just couldn't help but be pleased when someone was struggling like that.

"As you wish, Your Highness." She grumbled and gave Padmé a dirty look. Padme just shrugged nonchalantly. If someone gave her a credit for every dirty look she received, she would have her wealth doubled and let me remind you that she was wealthiest woman (well, her father was the wealthiest man and since she was his daughter and heiress, what was his, was hers too) in the galaxy.

"Glad that you agree with me." Padmé purred and glanced at the Senate. Thousands of eyes watched her as she graced them with a polite smile and asked. "Would anyone else like to say something? If not, then I'll declare this meeting successful and finish it."

Everyone was silent and for a second Padmé thought that no one actually wanted to protest anything, but then Senator Bail Organa of Alderaan rose from his chair and cleared his throat.

Padmé's eyes narrowed. She always strongly disliked Organa, since both, her and her father suspected that he was actually a rebel spy planted in already tainted Senate. She would gut him if her father let her, but unfortunately, Emperor Palpatine decided that they needed Organa.

Padmé snorted. As if she would ever need a rebel scum. It wasn't her fault that her father was fighting with a tooth and nail to keep his precious traitors alive, even if they were worthless and good for nothing. Well, what she could say. Palpatine was a scavenger by nature.

"Do you want to say something, Senator Organa?" Padmé asked sharply, her brown eyes piercing him like blaster bullets. The Heiress' lips curled into a venomous smile as she noticed how tiny drops of sweat covered his forehead and how he became fifty shades paler.

Bail met her searching eyes bravely. That man had a backbone, Padmé would give him that. The only thing she despised more than rebels, was spineless men.

"Actually, yes, Your Highness." He began. "We heard how you captured the leader of the rebellion."

Padmé's eyes narrowed and her lips pressed into a thin line. 'Now don't you dare and go there.'

"We were thinking," Organa continued and the Heiress bit back a witty remark about overheating his brain with too much thinking. As much as she would like to snap like a spoiled teenager, she needed to remember that she should act more maturely than a regular twenty year old female. She was better than that. She was better than them.

"About what?" She asked with a calmness that would give any Jedi run for money.

"You have Master Anakin Skywalker as your prisoner." Bail started carefully, not allowing himself to taint his voice with any sign of concern. Like he needed any more proof that he was a traitor.

Padmé crossed her hands over her chest and scowled at Organa.

"I fail to see how this fact concerns you."

"Let me explain this for you, My Lady." Organa said boldly. "This civil war is splitting the galaxy into two halves and many planets were ruined because of it. As the representative and king of planet Alderaan, I'm concerned to not let my planet become one of those ruins. I think, I have a right to know, if Anakin Skywalker's imprisoning means that the war is over."

Padme's blood boiled. Few days ago Alderaan openly declared itself as a member of rebellion and now this man was shameless enough to continue his farce and pretend like he was one of Imperials. She debated to herself if ordering the Stormtroopers to shoot him was worthy of a whipping session.

"The Resistance is more than just Anakin Skywalker." She stated coldly. "They will only double their attempts of destroying the Empire, since they will try to save their leader too."

Senator Mon Mothma narrowed her eyes as she observed Padmé's expressionless face.

"Should we afraid, My Lady?" Mon Mothma asked in a silky voice. "Depending on your words, we have a reason to be frightened."

Padmé gritted her teeth. The nerve of that woman!

"Of course, not, Senator Mothma. Even if the Resistance triples its pathetic attempts, it still won't be enough to bring the Empire at its end."

Padmé immediately felt the waves of satisfaction as Mothma reddened from the anger. The Heiress rose from her chair and observed the Senate. From her Senator pod she could easily see how the most of Senators fought their anger that was caused by her words. She sighed. Traitors. So many traitors.

"Now, if you don't have any questions, I'll declare this meeting completed. You may leave the hall."

Padmé watched as the Senators mumbled under their breath as they left their pods. She leaned backward and closed her eyes as small hands planted themselves on her shoulders and massaged her tensed muscles.

"You're angry." Dormé stated.

"The nerve of them." Padmé grumbled. "Can you believe it? They shamelessly asked if I'm afraid of their tiny tantrums."

Dormé chuckled.

"I would not call this 'tantrum' tiny."

"It's definitely is not as big as they think." She didn't need to open her eyes to know that Dormé was arching both of her eyebrows. Padmé sighed. "Okay, it's big, but Father will take care of it soon."

Dormé's hands stiffened. Padmé wanted to ask why she stopped, but before she could say something, her handmaiden resumed massaging.

"Why you think so?" She asked quietly.

Padmé shrugged.

"On our previous meeting he told me that he had something terrifying to plant the seeds of fear in the Resistance."

Dormé swatted her.

"Hey, stop hitting me."

"Then stop being dramatic." Padmé giggled and felt how her handmaiden's hands left her shoulders. The Heiress opened her eyes and observed how her friend watched the empty pods silently. Dormé turned her head around and lowered her eyes. "Do you think he will success?"

"He will success what."

"Frightening people."

Padmé shrugged.

"To be honest, I do not know. He didn't tell me what he was planning." When she noticed how Dormé worried her bottom lip, the Heiress grinned. "Stop brooding, Dormé, I'll kill him sooner than he'll harm you."

Dormé frowned.

"Now, you're talking like him."

"Well, what can I say. I'm his daughter, adoptive or not."

Her handmaiden sighed.

"Still, you know I hate when you're talking like that. You're scaring me."

Padmé stepped forward and placed her hands on Dormé's shoulders. She and Dormé had same height so she could easily stare into her handmaiden's eyes. There was a fright in them and Padmé furrowed her eyebrows. She hated when Dormé was afraid.

"You know that I don't have any other choice."

"You can let the rebellion..."

"I can't." Padmé cut off her sharply. "I was trained to lead the empire since age ten. I won't let some bunch of idiots to found another poor excuse of republic that probably lasts only twenty or thirty years. Besides," A smirk adorned her lips. "Better me as the leader of the Empire than my father." She stretched her numbed limbs. "Force, I need a good bath and ten hours of sleep. Those idiots are tiring as Sith's hell. Every time I listen to them more than twenty minutes, I feel like they drained all my life-force."

Dormé slapped her shoulder.

"I told you, stop being dramatic. When you will be the Empress you can dismiss them forever. Now go in your 'fresher and lie in your bathtub. You need it before you'll resume observing Master Skywalker. And take off these robes too. You look some kind of nun in them. If you want to seduce him, you need to show more skin."

"I'm showing enough of my skin."

"Padmé, dear, any dress that has your father's approval, is absolutely useless in the art of seducing men and showing your wrists and collarbones definitely isn't enough to weave Anakin Skywalker in your web. That man is a Jedi for the Force's sake. You know the rule number one in the Jedi Code?"

"No attachments."

"Exactly and these thick robes certainly won't help you to form any attachments with him. Now go and do what I told you and never talk about killing your father in the Senate building. Even the walls have ears here."

* * *

Padmé felt like Force itself touched her and filled her with the energy and will of life. Her skin was soft, her brown curls glossy and her face well-rested and calm. Her glorious eyes sparkled in the sunlight.

She listened to her handmaiden and chose backless sapphire airy dress. The color of her garment matched her prey's bright piercing eyes and complimented her fair skin, made it lighter in other's eyes. Also, its sleeves or more lack of them definitely would bring some attention to her arms that toned after years of hand –to-hand combat training and wielding of different blasters (having an expert of martial arts as handmaiden or not, she still needed to defend herself if her life was in some kind of jeopardy).

Padmé Palpatine was a woman of patience and strategy. She knew that she couldn't allure her prey if she attacked him straightforward. It would only increase the distance between them. If she wanted him on her side, she would only motivate him to take the first step. Blinded by his lust, Anakin Skywalker would willingly step in her trap.

The Heiress to the throne of Empire eyed the door that separated her and her prey. Anakin was probably still tinkering with her chirping droid. She grinned. Poor Jedi wouldn't know what would hit him straight in his face.

* * *

 **Ladies and Gentlemen, behold Padme Palpatine the seductress and soon STHAMAS and the plot will kick in so, it was some kind of a filler chapter that served us as preparation. But, at least, we discovered why is Padme so infatuated with Anakin. She sees him as the champion of liberty or something like that. Like others, she, too wants to be freed from her father. Also, we explored her friendship with Dorme. So, our Padme has some light dots in her darkness too, like, she genuinely cares about Dorme, who is closest thing for her to what we call a 'friend'.**

 **Thank you for your reviews, love ya, Guys.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: You all know, but still, I don't own Star Wars.**

 **A/N: At first, I'm so sorry for the late update. I'm neck deep in my exams. So, the past days were insanely busy and I didn't have a time for writing and updating.**

 **I'm so happy that you like this story. Like, when I posted this I never imagined that so many people would read it. I'm astonished to be honest.**

 **Colliding Neon Stars: I'm glad that you're back in SW fandom *opens arms for a hug* Also, every reader's opinion is important for me. So, don't be shy, tell me what you think.**

 **One guest asked if I was on Tumblr (Instagram; Twitter). Well, yes, you can find me on Tumblr (** **), but I don't use it often, since I don't have a lot of free time (kriffing University). So, trust me people, when I have free time, I'm writing this story. If you want to ask me something, just PM me, since I'm often on ffnet with my phone. So, I'll always read and answer your emails.**

 **Aaand I'm happy that you all like my Padmé and Anakin. I'm trying to give them reasonable personalities. Like, yes, of course Anidala will happen, but not yet, because if Padmé is more forward in their relationship, Anakin will be more wary (he isn't in love with Padmé since age nine, so Padme will need more than her pretty face to put her spell on him).**

* * *

The sun was hitting his back just right and she could see the hard planes of muscles of his back. For a few minutes she just stood and watched how his taut muscles flexed as he tinkered with Artoo. The Heiress observed how his pink scars reflected the sunlight, glistening and shimmering like soft ribbons of the finest silk. Padme decided that even his scars were perfect.

Her father would probably fume and shatter and bend every piece of glass and metal in his cabinet, if he knew that his daughter was doing nothing to break his prisoner's spirit. Padmé liked the unyielding strength in his cerulean eyes, that reflected the wildfire of his very soul. This fire could rival the melting lava of Mustafar and roast anyone alive, but Padmé wasn't afraid. She welcomed its burning heat with open arms, since only this fire could reach into her frozen core and warm it up.

Padmé shifted and cleared her throat. Her eyes flickered in satisfaction as she noticed how her charge's marred back stiffened and straightened. His head slowly turned and stormy blue eyes locked into cinnamon brown ones. She could see his disgust in them. It was kind of funny, the Heiress mused, how much anger this Jedi possessed and still claimed himself as the warrior of light side and defender of the peace in the galaxy.

His icy blue irises didn't leave her eyes and Padmé felt how the disappointment coiled in her stomach. She mentally kicked herself. Of course, he wouldn't be seduced by her backless dress, he was a Jedi for the Force's sake and he was raised by Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi nonetheless, the embodiment of virginity and pureness.

And of course, don't forget that he was the leader of rebellion. There were plenty of pretty women. Of course, he wouldn't take her seriously. Even if his eyes swiftly traveled from her eyes to her bare arms and collarbones, she knew that he wasn't truly attracted to her.

Well, his loss.

And his loss or not, Her Majesty Padmé Palpatine was anything but quitter. If she needed to achieve his trust at first for seducing him, she would do everything for that.

Skywalker rose from his crouching position and stepped toward her. Now, since they were standing toe to toe, she could fully appreciate his eyes and decide that footages of holonews didn't do justice to them. In the holowid they always appeared plain blue, but now she could see a whole myriad of colors – icy blue, deep ocean blue, steamy grey with luminous blue flecks and azure rings around the irises. They reminded her whirlpools in the stormy weather like in the stories her nanny told her while she lived in orphanage.

Skywalker leaned forward and scowled at her.

"So, what are you doing here, are you afraid that I will leave this pretty little chamber?" He sneered at her. "Don't worry. I'm stuck here, you can thank this shiny thing." He pointed at his collar and Padmé rolled her eyes. For the fearless leader and the Messiah of Jedi, he as sure as Sith's hell was quite a drama queen.

She crossed her hands across her chest and pursed her lips.

"What are you doing with my droid?"

"His few wires were loosened and I tried to fix them." Skywalker answered, turned around and crouched in front of Artoo again. Padmé decided that she liked how his back glistened deliciously on the faint sunlight. The woman allowed her eyes to roam again on his dark blond locks and bare back (again, why was he shirtless? Wasn't his wounds already healed?) and felt how a wide smile stretched on her face. Anakin was oblivious of her gaze as he commented "You don't need to thank me."

The smile vanished from her face and Padmé scowled again. Did this man have a single bone in his body that wasn't arrogant?

"I will thank you when Mustafar freezes," she snapped at him and dropped her hands. 'Remember about the trust thing,' she reminded herself. "Listen, I didn't come here to pick a fight with you."

He didn't even spare her a glance as he screwed a bolt into her droid.

"Then why are you here?"

Padmé clasped her hands and sat down on his bed. It was untouched, she noticed. He didn't sleep at night in the bed, Padmé realized and her eyebrows furrowed in confusion. Why he chose the floor (since there wasn't couch or any furniture that could be useful for sleeping. In Skywalker's bedchamber were only bed, a few chairs and a holowid. ' _He needs to watch how his precious rebellion fails_ ,' her father declared gleefully) over his bad?

"I came here to talk to you." She answered.

Skywalker turned his hand to see her expression as he narrowed his eyes.

"Why you want to talk to me?" He asked nonchalantly.

Padmé leaned forward and gave him her most charming smile that could disarm thousands of idiots, who called themselves Senators. She mentally groaned as her prey met her smile with one doubtfully raised eyebrow. Damn Jedi and their kriffing code. If Skywalker wasn't raised to stay as pure as a virgin snow, her smile would have a tiny effect, at least.

"To know you better," she explained. "I want to know why you fight against us."

Skywalker turned his head again and resumed tinkering with Artoo. Padmé huffed. Did this man know that it's impolite when someone talks to you and you won't acknowledge their presence?

He shrugged.

"Well, you know, there's a small, tiny thing, name's Freedom. Many fight for it."

"Everyone in the Empire is free." Padmé argued. "We outlawed slavery."

Skywalker snorted.

"Tell that the population of Tatooine."

The Heiress narrowed her eyes.

"What do you mean?"

Anakin exhaled and stopped working. His hands dropped as he turned around to look at his companion.

"You outlawed the slavery in papers, but in reality you changed nothing. In the Outer Rim it is still alive."

Padmé arched an eyebrow.

"So? This is why you're fighting against us? To free the slaves from their patrons?"

"I fight against you, because you're so blinded by your power that you fail to see what you are doing to the galaxy." He explained plainly. "Everyone is your slave, in one way or another. Is my, as Jedi's duty to fight for the peace and freedom of the galaxy."

The woman scoffed.

"Typical Jedi nonsense." She leaned forward and gave him another of her charming smiles. "Why are you one of them?"

"I told you..."

"Not that." Padmé cut him off. "Why are fighting on the light side? The dark side of the Force is much stronger."

One blond eyebrow rose.

"Why you think so?"

"Father taught me." Padmé defended herself.

Skywalker chuckled and Padmé let herself to bask in the warmth of his laughter, even though she knew that he was laughing and probably mocking her naivety.

"The dark side isn't stronger than the light side." He told her. "It's just easier path. In the heat of the battle, it's much easier to channel your anger and aggression than call up your inner peace and compassion. But in the end, your anger and hatred will consume you."

Padmé shrugged.

"Don't know. The Force is the Force with its dark and light sides. You shouldn't ignore either."

Skywalker's mouth twitched and curled into small smirk.

"Did your father teach you that?"

The Heiress reddened.

"It's my opinion."

Anakin shrugged at her answer and turn his back to her, resuming cutting and joining of her droid's wires. Padmé huffed. What the hell was wrong with her droid that he needed days to repair it?

"Well, don't tell your father about this opinion or he will fry you alive."

The woman smirked.

"Sorry, I think I didn't hear right. Did I hear a concern in your voice?"

Skywalker shrugged.

"Don't flatter yourself. I just prefer your face over your fathers."

Padmé opened her mouth to answer his insult (or maybe it was a compliment in his own twisted way), when someone knocked at the door.

"Come in." Anakin called and the Heiress huffed. Clearly, he preferred anyone's company over hers. After all, pretty face or not, she was still the single child of his arch enemy.

The door opened and revealed her handmaiden. Padmé scowled at her. Didn't Dormé know what she was interrupting? She pushed Padmé in this whole 'playful banter' (although Padmé couldn't call their conversation _playful_ ) for the love of Force.

Dormé met her scowl with an impassive expression.

"Master Skywalker." She greeted Anakin and glanced at Padmé. "Milady, you father is summoning you."

Padmé's eyebrows knitted together.

"Why?"

"He didn't tell me, Milady. He just said that he wants to see you. In his cabinet, Milady."

Padmé grimaced. Well, at least she didn't need to change her clothes.

"Let me grab my shawl and take me to him." She ordered her handmaid and rose from the bed. Padmé gave Skywalker a curt nod and grabbed Dormé's hand.

"How he looked?" She hissed in Dormé's ear.

"Well, I should say that I definitely appreciate his shirtless condition."

Padmé rolled her eyes.

"Not Skywalker, my father. How he looked to you? Angry, calm, unreadable..."

Dormé grimaced.

"Angry. Definitely angry."

"Sith's hell." Padmé mumbled and Dormé added.

"His whole room was shaking. I think, he shattered a vase or two."

"Kriff..."

"Don't swear." Dormé scolded her. "And Tarkin is there too."

"Well, great." The Heiress grumbled. "The last I wanted to see was that traitor's face. I don't know why father still keeps him."

"Tarkin is his best strategist?" Dormé suggested.

Padmé snorted.

"Please, my father has a brilliant mind. He doesn't need those cockroaches to plan his battles." She frowned as she looked down at her attire. "Go in my room and grab a shawl for me. Father will shatter more than two vases if he sees me in this."

* * *

Dormé was right, when she said that Emperor Palpatine was angry. He wasn't growling or something, like a normal person does. He wasn't even wearing an angry scowl on his face, but you could the how furious he was in his glimmering sickly yellow eyes and you could feel the tension in the air. One wrong move and Sith's hell would break.

Padme respectfully lowered her head as she greeted her father and Governor Tarkin. The Grand Moff gave her a tight-lipped smile and her father just nodded. The woman felt how chill ran down her spine. 'Be careful,' Dormé told her as she wrapped the shawl around Padmé's shoulders. 'Remember, daughter or not, one wrong word and he'll snap your neck.'

"My dear Daughter," Emperor Palpatine spoke. "I dare to say, you don't know why you are here?"

"I'm afraid, I don't, Father."

"Governor Tarkin." Palpatine addressed the Grand Moff. Tarkin cleared his throat and started.

"His Majesty showed me the plans of our weapon. We're already building it." Padmé could hear the smugness in his voice and she shot him a short scowl that quickly bled into a pleasant expression. So what, if Palpatine told that him before her? She still was Emperor's daughter, the heiress to the throne when he was just a replaceable governor.

"That's great news, Governor." She said carefully and left a hint of question in her voice. If they were already building that weapon, why was her father pissed beyond limits?

Her father noticed her question and glowered at Tarkin. His bony fingers tightly gripped the handles of his throne. Padme was amazed that the wood didn't break under the pressure.

"There's a spy in our palace or Senate." Palpatine snarled and Padmé gave him a bewildered look.

"The Senate is full of spies." She told him.

The Emperor shook his head and leaned backward with a frown marring his face. Padmé bit her lip; by his expression she could say that this spy was worse than brainless Organa or Mothma.

"After we imprisoned Skywalker, we fought against the rebels again. We thought that without their leader, they would be more confused. But we were wrong, they defeated us." Tarkin explained, twisting his thin lips into an ugly grimace. "They knew that we were planning a trap for them."

"Someone hacked our system?" Padmé asked warily.

"There was no trace of hacking." Palpatine growled and narrowed his eyes. Padmé felt how the air around her chilled and tainted from the darkness that was radiated by her father. Her father had no clue who was spy and because of that, he was extremely furious. And extremely furious Emperor Palpatine was extremely dangerous for the entire palace, including Padmé herself.

"Someone is spying us personally." Tarkin clarified. The Emperor nodded at his words and stared Padmé in her eyes sternly. The woman felt how her blood froze in her veins. She hated when her father scrutinized her like that, like she was a piece of meat brought out for selling. She bit her bottom lip. Narrowed yellow eyes meant that he was planning something with her. Something that probably would have an unpleasant end. Very unpleasant end.

"This is why I'm planning a ball tomorrow." The Emperor announced and Padmé gaped at him?

"A ball?"

"It will be perfect opportunity for me to probe everyone's mind. Also, I want you to observe them closely. You're very good at reading people." It wasn't compliment, just acknowledgment of her talents. "Also," Palpatine shifted in his throne. "I want you to be perfect daughter at the ball."

Padmé licked her dry lips.

"I'll always try to be a perfect daughter for you."

"No, _Dear_ ," her father interrupted her and the girl again felt the cool tightness around her and inside her stomach. The cool tightness that she usually referred as ' _Her Father's Wrath'_ in her mind. The endearment meant that she was walking in dangerous waters and her father was annoyed by her. "Tomorrow you will be at your best, because you will meet your future husband at the ball."

Her future husband? Padmé felt like falling, like someone snatched the ground under her feet. From the corner of her eye she saw how Tarkin smirked triumphantly. Without a doubt, he suggested to her father to find a husband for her. ' _It will only strengthen our connections with the planets of the Empire,'_ he probably said to her father. In reality, Tarkin just wanted her out of Coruscant, so he could easily take her place as the heir to the throne.

Well, he could keep dreaming, because Padmé never would give up what was rightfully hers.

The Heiress put her politician's mask on her face and eyed the men coolly. She wasn't going to act like a frightened girl and give them the satisfaction.

"I fail to remember when I became engaged to someone." She said emotionlessly.

"Don't act like a child, Padmé," her father said and Padmé shot him a glare worthy of a Sith Lord. "Senator Rush Clovis asked your hand for marriage and I accepted his proposal."

Padmé tried to remember who the Sith's hell was Rush Clovis. As her father mentioned, he was some Senator.

' _Great, my father wants me to marry some brainless and spineless Senator.'_

And like Sith's hell she was going to marry this kriffing Rush Clovis. She didn't need a Senator as her husband, thank you very much.

Besides, now, when she had Anakin Skywalker's company, poor Clovis only could dream on their future marriage, that would never happen.

"And you forgot to ask me if I wanted to marry someone?" Padmé asked sardonically.

Palpatine glared at her.

"You're a politician and my daughter, Padmé. What were you expecting that you would fall in love with someone, marry them and ride off into the sunset?"

Newsflash, Father: she already met that someone. Not that she was going to tell him that. Her father would fry both of them alive if he heard that she was lovesick for Anakin Skywalker.

"At least, I was expecting that I would know if I was going to wed someone."

"Well, you know now," the Emperor snarled. "Now, leave me and Governor Tarkin, we have things to discuss."

Padmé gritted her teeth and fought an urge to sneer at them. If her father thought, that she was another pawn of his, oh, how wrong he was and oh, how he was going to regret this.

' _Not yet,'_ she chanted in her head. ' _Don't show your anger. Don't blow your cover. Act like an obedient child he thinks you are.'_

She quickly dropped a curtsy. Her plans swirling in her mind like a whirlpool of messy thoughts. This Rush Clovis would slightly hinder her schemes, but this whole marriage thing wasn't anything that she couldn't come out without breaking a sweat. She was Padmé Palpatine, for the love of Force. The future Empress of the Galactic Empire.

Padmé smirked. She could get used of this title.

* * *

 **Aand the award of Year's Father goes to Sheev Palpatine.**

 **Seriously, I hate this man and I'm afraid that my feelings will cloud my writing when it comes to this character. He's manipulative mastermind bastard and I'll try to keep him in character. He would try to persuade Padmé to wed Clovis, but he's too angry now. Someone is getting the important information out the castle like it is nothing, so he doesn't have patient for pretty words.**

 **And...**

 **Did someone want Rush Clovis?**

 **At first, I wasn't planning this marriage thing, but the wedding will only twist the plot. Did I mention that I like twisting everything?**

 **Aaand I was going to put the ball in this chapter, but I didn't want to overwhelm it, so the ball will in following chapter. We will meet Rush Clovis (Force, I despise this man. Also, I was feeling bad, since I hadn't updated awhile. I should warn you, that this month is very busy for me, but I will try to post at least weekly updates.**

 **And don't you worry; Padmé won't have butterflies in her stomach when she sees him. It needs a lot more than some green-eyed bastard to take her attention off Anakin.)**

 **Love y'all,**

 **Were**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: 62 favorites, 94 follows, 106 reviews o.O did I tell you guys that you're awesome?**

* * *

" _Say my name."_

 _Padmé gasped as the long fingers hovered above her mouth, barely touched her lips and traveled down, floating over her throat, chest, stomach and finally, barely touching her sex._

" _Say my name." The voice growled._

 _Dark brown eyes fluttered open and she observed the sight above her. Disheveled dark blond hair, swollen red lips and dark blue eyes that roamed over her tiny frame and finally locked in her brown ones._

" _Say it." The sight insisted._

 _The long fingers circled her sex and Padmé groaned. Her hands rose to touch his skin and she arched her back for more contact._

 _The sight ducked his head. His lips desperately sought her skin, mapping every inch of it._

 _Licking, kissing, biting. The fingers teased her, angered her, tore the gasps out of her._

" _Say it."_

 _Padmé felt how something entered her and she screamed._

" _Anakin."_

Kriff. Kriff. Kriff.

Padmé panted as she removed her blanket from her body. Her underwear was ruined. Her sheets were ruined. Nice dream by the way.

She thanked the Force, that it was a droid who took care of her laundry and not a handmaiden. Although, she was a normal adolescent female and the wet dreams were parts of puberty, thank you very much.

But Padmé could bet that she would flush redder than the lava of Mustafar if some woman raised an eyebrow at her smelly, tainted sheets.

The dark-haired woman groaned as she tied her thick brown locks into a low ponytail and grabbed her robe. She could tell by the light outside that it was already past afternoon. Geez, when she did fall asleep yesterday? She could recall how she tossed in her bed and struggled to fall in a dreamless sleep as dark thoughts about her marriage and Anakin's reaction plagued her mind. Padmé felt how a shiver ran down her spine as she envisioned her beloved's reaction about her future marriage.

An expressionless face.

Because he could care less.

Padmé groaned. A good shower would clear her clouded mind and then she could call Dormé to put a dress on her frame and twist her hair into some fancy hairstyle.

Padmé poured her sweet scented shampoo on her hand and massaged it in her hair. She grimaced as her fingers tangled in the knots and huffed. Sometimes her long, thick hair truly was a pain in ass.

Her eyes snapped open as she heard how someone entered her bedchamber. Padmé quickly rinsed off the soap of her hair and turned off her shower.

"Who's there?"

"It's me, Milady." Dormé called out. "His Excellency sent me here to prepare you for the ball. It will start in six hours."

Padmé frowned and turned on her shower again. There was some soap in her hair and her body still needed a good rough brushing.

"There's a plenty time before the ball. Why he sent you so early?"

"I'm afraid, I don't know, Milady. Probably he wants you to show off your pretty face. After all, you will meet your future husband tonight."

"Dormé, don't speak like that." Padmé scolded her handmaiden. Even though her father always pretended like he cared about her, the Heiress knew that he never trusted her and thus, her bedchamber was bugged. Every word, that she or Dormé spoke, was listened by her father's lackeys. "It's dangerous."

Dormé didn't answer her but Padmé could bet that her handmaiden was rolling her eyes.

"I know." Dormé said. "By the way, how you feel about that?"

"About what."

"Your husband." Padmé could picture how her handmaiden shrugged her shoulders as she said those two horrific words.

Padme poured soap on her washcloth and started rubbing it on her shoulders as she answered her friend:

"How should I feel?"

Dormé snorted.

"Well, most of girls would be nervous."

"I'm not most of girls." Padmé replied and scrubbed her arms. "I have nothing be nervous or afraid. It's my fiancé dearest, who needs to be at his best behavior. I'm the daughter of Emperor and I'll become the Empress in future. I always can to find a better catch."  
"And we can't say same for him." Dormé said and added in a soft voice. "Be honest, Padmé. How do you feel now?"

'Awfull', Padmé wanted to say, but she couldn't. May Dormé didn't remember, but she hadn't forget, that her chamber was full with gadgets. So, she decided to answer her friend's question diplomatically.

"What I feel doesn't matter. I'll always knew, that I would end up like this." Well, that sounded pathetically even in her mind. "Crying and whining won't give me anything."

Padmé heard how Dormé sighed in her bedchamber.

"Well, at least he isn't some old creep or so I heard."

"That's better than nothing." Padmé admitted and turned off her shower to slide into her towel robe. "You may come in."

Her 'fresher's door opened and Dormé stepped in with a fresh towel in her hands. She helped her mistress to dry her hair and motioned at the chair that stood in front of her toilet table.

"Sit on it and let me make you beautiful."

Padmé rolled her eyes.

"Told you, I could parade myself naked and he would still praise my beauty."

Dormé grinned devilishly.

"He definitely would."

The Heiress flustered when she realized what she said and swatted her friend as she sat down on her chair. She silently watched as Dormé started cleaning her face and brushing her face. Padmé bit her lip and sighed. She was planning to meet her co-rebel, Sabé and see her own army of Stormtroopers, who would conquer the galaxy in the nearest future, when both armies, her father's and rebellion's, would be drained and absolutely vulnerable for her strike.

Well, trust her father to ruin her plans.

"Did you tell Master Anakin about your engagement?" Dormé asked as she started cleaning Padmé's forehead.

The younger woman shrugged and closed her eyes.

"He could care less."

Padmé leaned backwards and relaxed as her handmaiden took care of her skin and hair. During preparation she could let herself to drift into a lethargic sleep and calmly scheme her future moves. Tarkin thought that he was throwing her out of his luxurious future as he suggested to her father to wed her and Rush Clovis. What he didn't know was that he was giving Padmé biggest ace he would ever imagine. It seemed like someone gave Clovis a credit for every time Padmé cursed the annoying Grand Moff.

Padmé did her homework well, thank you very much.

Well, to use Clovis' money meant that she needed to say goodbye to every plan about crashing her wedding. As much as it displeased her, she knew that she needed this marriage. Can't breed a whole army of the Stormtroopers without some money.

Kriff.

"Wake up, Your Majesty." Dormé snorted in her ear.

Padmé opened her eyes and looked at her handmaiden quizzically.

"I fell asleep?"

"Around three hours ago." Dormé replied and curled a thick lock of Padmé's hair. "There's still an hour left before the ball. So we can choose your dress and then you can go and greet your father. His Majesty expects you early."

Padmé frowned. Her father could keep dreaming.

"He should think about my early arriving before he arranged a marriage for me." She said coldly. So what, if Palpatine helped her and dug his own grave with this marriage. Padmé still could act like a petty girl she was.

Dormé giggled and opened her mistress' wardrobe.

"What color do you want to wear today?" She asked as she stared thousands of the colorful dresses. "Red, black, green. You can wear green. Your fiancé's eyes are green."

Padmé shrugged.

"Told you. I don't need to impress him." She leaned backwards and shot her handmaiden a devious smirk. "Give me something blue."

Dormé raised an eyebrow.

"Blue, huh?"

"It brings out my eyes."

"Yeah, yeah, try to fool someone else. I know everything what is going in the pretty head of yours."

Padmé rolled her eyes.

"Say what you want. Blue really suits me."

Her handmaiden grimaced.

"You have tons of blue dresses. What shade of blue you want? Baby blue, cobalt, azure..."

Padmé bit her bottom lip as she remembered the ever swirling shades of blue of Anakin's eyes. His eyes were grayish blue when he was bored, light blue when he was sarcastic, stormy blue when he was angry...

What shade of blue would his eye color when he was lustful?

She closed her eyes as she remembered her dream and the vivid image of her beloved's eyes. Dark violet, almost black. Sparkling like two newly cut Corusca gems.

"Give me a violet one."

Dormé gave her a disgusted look like she knew what kind of thoughts flowed inside her mistress' head. She mumbled something about 'lovesick fools' and grabbed a handful of shimmering violet material.

"Is this good for you?" The handmaiden asked as she displayed the dress in front of her mistress.

Padmé chewed her lip and eyed her dress. It was made of a thick fabric that shimmered on the lights of her bedroom. The dress was backless, embroidered with dark purple thread and adorned with wide straps of the black leather.

Well, duh, talk about 'I do not need an impressive attire to bewitch someone.' That dress would bring anyone on their knees.

Well, except Anakin Skywalker or she would try to enchant him with this dress centuries ago. Padmé frowned about that thought. Way to damper her already ruined mood.

Dormé's lips curled upward.

"Are you sure that you don't want to weave him in your net?"

"Yes, I'm sure of it." Padmé snapped and stood up. "Now help me to put this on."

"Geez, what got your panties into a twist, woman." Dormé huffed and helped her mistress to slide off the robe. "I know that you're pissed off about all this farce, but there's no need to leash out on me."

Padmé sighed.

"You're right, I'm sorry. I just..." She helplessly threw her hands in the air. "I'm just tired."

Dormé patted on her back as she gave her a set of underwear and started unstrapping and unclasping the adornments of violet dress.

"I know that it's hard for you, but..." She exhaled. "There's no another way. The only hope we can maintain is that there will be a better time."

"Dormé." Padmé hissed. "Stop talking like that."

Her handmaiden only raised eyebrows and glared at her.

"Why, because your father will hear my words and I will taste his famous Force Lightning? Let me tell you something. He doesn't care, since I'm nothing."

"You're not nothing." Padmé replied calmly. "You're the closest thing I can call a 'friend.'" _You're my weakness. It would hurt me if something happened to you. You aren't off the hook in his eyes._ She left it unspoken but by the darkening of Dormé's eyes she could tell, that the handmaiden caught the meaning of her words.

"I know." She grumbled. "It's just... very frustrating."

Padmé smiled weakly.

"Don't I know this?"

Her handmaiden huffed and put the soft airy fabric on her frame. Dormé silently knotted the slender straps and buckled metal fasteners. Her bottom lip curled in dissatisfaction as she clasped a jeweled necklace for her mistress. Padmé noticed her expression and sighed.

"What is wrong now?"  
Dormé gave her a worried glance.

"Do you want me to walk with you when you go to ballroom?"

The younger woman averted her eyes. As much as she dreaded the evening and would welcome her handmaiden's company, she knew how Dormé was terrified by her father's presence. Not that she could blame the poor girl. Dormé was sixteen when she first saw how her infuriated father cast Force Lightning on some unfortunate individual and stoke him dead.

Padmé chewed her lip thoughtfully.

"No." She decided. She may be called as _'Heartless and Cold'_ , but that didn't mean that she would enjoy her friend's suffering. "I can walk to the hall myself." Dormé immediately relaxed. "But..."

Light brown eyes narrowed as the handmaiden looked at her mistress suspiciously.

"But what?"

"I want you to check in my charge."

"Ah," Dormé released a sigh of relief and squatted to tie the straps of the Heiress' sandals. "That's easy. I bet he's still playing with Artoo."

Padmé snorted.

"He's 'fixing' this droid since I took him as my charge. I wouldn't be surprised if I hear that Artoo has no defect and Anakin is using it just to entertain himself."

The handmaiden shrugged.

"Well, as long as it makes him happy, what can we say." She tied the last strap around Padmé's ankle and stood up. "Now, you're done. Go on and blind them with your beauty."

Padmé groaned.

"They're already blinded." She glanced at her clock. "Do I already need to go?"

"There's fifteen minute left before the ball." Dormé reminded Padmé and shooed her. "Now go, you're prince is waiting for you."

"Don't joke like that."

"No, really, go now. You eat those pansy pant guys before breakfast."

Padmé shot her friend a last glare and huffed.

"Fine. And you do what I say."

"Right, Milady."

"Good." Padmé grumbled and slammed the door behind her. Her eyes narrowed before she adjusted the darkness that conquered the hall (With all the money of the galaxy, her father still liked to darken anything. Padmé couldn't exactly pinpoint if he was doing this because of his greediness or it was some kind of sick move to suit the metaphor 'dark as my soul'). She mumbled something about smartass handmaidens as something grabbed her hand.

Padmé shrieked and quickly balled her fist to aim at her attacker's throat and silent him for eternity. Her rigid posture slightly relaxed as her eyes made out the calm features of her attacker – who was in truth, Rush Clovis.

Clovis noticed her glare and chuckled.

"No need to decapitate me, Your Highness. I'm just here to escort you to the hall."

"I could walk to it myself just fine." Padmé snapped.

Clovis just raised an eyebrow and offered her his arm that only fueled the woman's anger. How dared he to waltz here like nothing happened. Like he hadn't asked her hand in the marriage and wrote his name on her future with a permanent marker without asking her permission.

"His Excellency sent me here to accompany you, Your Majesty."

Padmé gritted her teeth and accepted his hand. 'Play it cool, Padmé,' she reminded herself, 'you have every right to be furious, but don't forget that you're politician first. The politicians don't get angry.'

"It's very thoughtful of him to send one of his loyal lackeys to accompany his daughter. I might get lost in my own palace." She retorted and cringed. Here goes 'Play it cool, Padmé' speech.

To her surprise, Clovis didn't appear to be insulted. He only shrugged his shoulders and continued walking wordlessly.

"Don't spend your energy over shooting petty words at me, Your Majesty. Your childish antics won't change our colliding futures."

Padmé glared at him. The nerve of this man.

"You're forgetting your place, Senator." She said sharply.

"My place is next to you, Your Majesty."

'You wish', Padmé snorted. Typical gold digger (although he had more than enough money and Padmé would definitely appreciate this in the near future). He must be dreaming about sitting on the throne and ordering around.

Like it would ever happen.

"We are already in the hall." Was her only answer. She didn't want to resume listening to his pink framed view of his future. "I need to greet my father."

To her annoyance he didn't let her hand go as she walked towards her father. No, like a trained pet, he was beaming at everyone and shooting her adoring glances.

Particularly large smile spread over his face as Emperor Palpatine's yellow eyes landed on them.

"Padmé, my dear." He exclaimed and Padmé resisted the urge to roll her eyes at his fake tone. "Rush, my son. Did you meet here in the hall when she was coming here?"

Clovis slightly bowed his head.

"Yes, Your Excellency."

Palpatine beamed at them and his daughter mentally grimaced. But she had her role to play.

"Senator Clovis was kind enough to offer me his company as I came here." She said with her most pleasing voice and squeezed her fiancé's hand. "Isn't that amazing?"

Her father observed them carefully and Padmé saw how a trace of pride flickered in his sickly yellow eyes before he gave them a gentle, fatherly smile.

"Well, of course, my dear." So she needed to sell her body to see pride in his eyes. Why didn't you tell me this earlier, Daddy Dearest? "Little birdie told me that you two have something to announce."

Clovis shifted.

"Well, yes, Your Excellency." He inhaled deeply and grinned at them. Padmé inwardly made a face. Aw, don't do that again. "I'm here to inform you that I asked your daughter's hand in marriage and fortunately, she accepted my offer."

She accepted his offer her foot.

Padmé gave them a polite smile and watched in interest how her father feigned a shock and happiness.

"Oh, my," He breathed. "What a great news you're telling me now. We need to announce this engagement tonight. No, we need to announce this right now."

He gestured Tarkin something and his not so loyal pet quickly cleared his throat and called their guests for attention. Her father politely smiled at them and clasped her and Clovis' hands with his claw-like fingers.

"My dear guests," Emperor Palpatine began. "I'm very glad to see you here and I hope you feel same." The crowd cheered at his words and Palpatine smiled wider before he continued. "You're here for a reason..." He paused and Padmé noticed how the interest of their guests perked as her father squeezed her tiny hand tightly. "My dear daughter and our beloved Senator are getting married.

"I feigned surprise but of course, I knew how deeply Rush's feelings towards my daughter ran. It was kind of hard not to notice them." How interesting that Padmé failed to discover them, although she was an expert at reading people's emotions. "It was matter of time before he cracked and came to us to offer his hand and heart.

"I'm so glad, that my Padmé feels same." Aw, Padmé could swear that there were tears glimmering in his eyes. "They both are very good children. They deserve each other. But, Rush, my son, remember." Palpatine let go Clovis' hand and waved a finger before his nose. "Treat her like a princess she is or you will feel my wrath on your head."

Ouch, that would hurt and although Padmé knew that his words were as much fake as his tears that were cascading down, she still felt a small wave of satisfaction as she noticed how her fiancé paled.

Clovis quickly composed himself and nodded at her father. Emperor Palpatine smiled widely and raised his chalice.

"Now, to the bride and groom, my dear guests."

"To the bride and groom." The crowd cheered and raised their chalices. Padmé too took a sip for her marriage's toast and tried to fake lovesick girl's expression as much as she could.

Her brown eyes narrowed when Clovis stepped forward to stand in front of her.

"Now what." She hissed quietly.

A smug smile spread over his lips.

"May I have a dance with you, my dear?"

"Well, of course." She took his hand and followed him as he guided her to the dance floor. The music was slow and romantic. The lights slightly dimmed. A perfect atmosphere for a romantic reunion.

Too bad that there wasn't one.

She bristled as she felt how her fiancé's fingers touched her bare back. They were moving in a slow rate. Her hands firmly planted themselves on his shoulders as she slowly swayed.

Padmé felt like someone poured iced water over her head as she detected how those hateful fingers slipped up and down, up and down, slowly caressing her skin in their own way.

"Stop." She hissed.

"Why?"

"Because I want so. Now, stop immediately."

"But why? I'm your fiancé. It's my right to touch you whenever I want and wherever I want."

Couldn't this guy get more creeper?

"Don't delude yourself," Padmé seethed and squeezed his shoulder. By his pained expression she could tell that she achieved her goal. Good. "My father may accepted your golden offer and thus I may be forced to marry you, but don't ever forget who I am. This my crash and tear your pretty fantasies, but never demand any wifely duty from me. And..." She inhaled deeply and glared him straight in his eyes. "Touch me ever again without my permission and Force help me, I'll slit your throat in your sleep." Padmé freed herself from his clutches and walked towards drink table. She needed a strong drink to put up all this poodoo.

* * *

 **AAAnd at last, the update. What a beautiful day, yepee. (Okay, I'm totally lying here. Outside is freezing and cold wind is blowing and my professor isn't posting my grade so I can finally close his goddamn course. What an assbut *Inner Castiel intensifies***

 **And, okay, guys what was that. I told you that Padmé wouldn't have any fuzzy feelings towards Clovis, right? And I'm a woman of my word. Clovis has his non-romantic role to play in this drama, so he will be around for a time. Anidala is safe. Anidala is set on stone. Let go of your worries.**

 **Btw, what you think about teaser smut scene? Since I'm novice at writing explicit sex scenes, it is some kind of challenge for me. I'm treading in unknown waters now.**

 **Now, until next update**

 **Were**


	6. Chapter 6

_We are very sorry to inform you that Senator Rush Clovis' father, Head of Muun family passed away yesterday. The reason of his death is unknown to us. Senator Clovis isn't answering our questions about his father's death._

 _Senator Clovis' biological parents died when the Senator was twelve years old and after that, Senator Clovis was adopted by the Head of Muun family. After his father's death, now this title belongs to the Senator. Clovis currently is engaged to Grand Vizier Padmé Palpatine. The date of their date is unknown for us, but it's probably delayed due the death of Clovis' father._

"Well, that was quick." Padmé remarked as she turn off the holovid.

"What do you mean?"

Padmé turned around to face at her companion who was watching her with curious blue eyes. She shrugged her shoulders and snorted.

"You don't get it? Clovis killed his father."

Skywalker gave her a disbelieving look.

"He did? But why?"

"Didn't you hear it? The title of the Head of Muun family now belongs to him."

Skywalker grimaced.

"That's horrible."

"He's a politician." Padmé explained. "Every politician is greedy, power-hungry wretched bastard who will do anything for more power and money."

"You're a politician too." Anakin pointed out.

"Guilty." Padmé smirked at him. "But I'm not a bastard. My parents were married."

A surprised look overtook his features.

"You remember your parents?"

Padmé shrugged.

"Barely. I was very young when they died." She didn't add that her parents were killed by the Jedi. It would cause another argument between them and she didn't really want that.

Anakin shifted and Padmé figured out that he was trying and failing miserably to comfort her.

"I never knew my father." He told her unhelpfully. Her eyebrows rose.

"It's not very unsurprising. The Jedi don't know their parents, since they're taken from them early before they'll attach to their progenitors."

"Usually, yes." Anakin agreed. "But I was nine when the Order took me as their youngling. Before that, my mother was raising me."

Padmé shot him a curious glance.

"Aren't you afraid that my father will hear about her? This whole room is bugged you know?"

Blond eyebrows rose.

"Then why are you telling me this? Aren't you afraid that your father will hear you?"

Padmé glowered at him.

"Don't use my words against me. My father knows that I know that you know that this whole room is bugged. He won't be angry." She was lying. Her father was probably electrocuting nearest person to him now if he was listening to her words.

"You're awfully confident." Skywalker remarked. "And now my headache is coming. I feel it in my bones."

"Probably from the dust in this room." Padmé suggested. "What you think about getting out?"

The holy and mighty leader of rebellion gave her a disbelieving look like she suddenly spurted another head.

"Are you suggesting that I can leave this palace?"

"With me, yes." Padmé lied. Her father was going to flip when he hears about that. But, to Sith's hell with him. This was what he was getting when he accepted Clovis' offer - and no, it wasn't a phase, it was real Padmé. Deal with it.

A nagging voice in the back of her head told her that she was playing with a fire, ahem, with a Force-Lightning and her father wouldn't let anyone, even his own daughter to disobey him. But he would probably calm down if she tells him that taking Anakin Skywalker out was a part of her plan ' _Bring The Leader Of Rebellion And Dad's Migraine For Past Ten Years On His Knees.'_ Not that she had any plan. She just wanted him to spent a one passionate night with her before she married her own migraine, as known as Rush Clovis for the common folk.

Was she demanding too much?

Probably, since she was demanding from a Jedi to spit at his vows and shred his robes for her.

Well, she was Emperor's daughter. She took various punishments and a surgical operation on her back at age thirteen in stride. If she wanted something, she deserved it. Deal with it.

Even if that 'it' was supposedly eternally virgin Jedi. Whatever.

"Are you sure?" Anakin's voice snapped her out of her thoughts.

"Absolutely." Padmé said and stomped the nagging voice in the back of her head with all the force she could muster. She didn't have a time for another surgical operation, her father wouldn't whip her.

Blue eyes brightened and another swirl of the color of heavens whirled in them.

"Just cover your face with a robe." She told him cautiously. "Your height will be a small problem. There aren't a lot of people in the court as tall as you."

Anakin chuckled and Padmé decided that it was most beautiful voice in whole galaxy.

"Aren't you afraid?" Anakin asked as he grabbed a plain robe from his wardrobe. "You're taking your worst enemy out."

"You still have that collar around your neck, don't you? One wrong move and all will be over for you." The woman pointed out and watched curiously as he covered his hair and upper part of his face with the hood of his cloak. "Aren't you afraid?"

"Of what?"

"That this may be a trap?" Padmé immediately bit her tongue.

Anakin stopped and glanced at her.

"Is this a trap?"

"No." She told him truthfully. "But you are still too trustful."

"In reality, I'm not." Anakin answered her. "In my past, I was and then received a harsh lesson that not everyone is worthy of my trust." He said acidly and his eyes darkened from bright blue to dark cobalt. Padmé felt sorry for anyone who wronged with Anakin in the past as she saw his harsh expression.

"Then why are you trusting me? I'm your worst enemy."

"I'm not trusting you." The man replied her. "Just what would you do to me?"

"I could kill you."

"When the Stormtroopers imprisoned me, I already accustomed with the fact that there are high chances of my death. Death doesn't scare me. I'm a Jedi."

Padmé scoffed.

"I could torture you."

"I think at our first meeting we already established the fact that torturing me would be absolutely fruitless."

"Well, yes." She agreed. "So, you aren't afraid? That we're going out together?"

"I'm the Hero With No Fear for a reason. Besides, I ready for anything for a breath of fresh air."

Well that rang promisingly in Padmé's ears.

"Okay." She said. " Now we need to sneak in my garage and get my speeder."

Anakin arched an eyebrow.

"Your garage?"

"I have my personal garage." Padmé boasted like a proud mother of child who got praised by the director of his school. In truth, there was nothing to be proud of. She didn't built this garage herself. She was just a spoiled daughter of a rich father.

Well, like she said, whips and stones. She deserved this garage.

"That's... Impressive." He probably thinking something far less polite and far more insulting, but Padmé knew that Anakin Skywalker was a smart man. He wasn't going to bit a hand that feed him. Scratch that. He would probably tear the whole arm off if someone dared feed him like that.

Padmé flushed. She reassured herself that with his collar, Skywalker couldn't hear her thoughts, although, she doubted herself as she saw his amused smirk.

The nagging voice returned and nipped her brain. Whispering harshly that Skywalker was awfully cheerful considering that in their past meetings he was always ready to bite her head off.

'That doesn't matter.' Padmé argued with herself. 'He just wants to go out from his room.'

'Please.' The nagging voice barked. 'That man was in father's dungeon for days without breaking a sweat and that says something about his endurance.'

'Precisely.' The woman insisted. 'After spending days in that hell, he'll do everything to go out.'

'I don't like this.' The nagging voice stubbornly declared. 'There's something fishy...'

"There's nothing fishy." Padmé growled.

"What?"

"Oh, nothing." Padmé mumbled as she realized that she voiced her thoughts aloud.

Anakin gave her a dubious look.

"Okay." He muttered. "So, where are we going?" He asked as they snuck in her garage.

"To Naboo." She quickly answered as she scanned the area and smirked as her eyes landed on sleek black speeder.

The man looked bewildered.

"Why to Naboo?"

"It's my birthplace. When I'm stressed I always go there. And even if you're the best pilot in whole galaxy, I'm taking us there." She hurriedly said as she noticed how Anakin eyed her speeder.

He frowned at her but said nothing.

"We aren't taking anything with us?" Skywalker asked as they sat comfortably in her speeder.

"We can grab anything there." Padmé said and turned on the engine. "You'll like there."

"I'll like everywhere where I won't see a trace of the empire."

Padmé chuckled.

"Sorry to disappoint you, but Father, too, was born on Naboo. Of course, it's loyal to empire."

"That's just sad."

Padmé shrugged.

"Whatever you say."

"Won't your father be angry?"

The woman rolled her eyes.

"I already told you, he won't be angry."

"And let me doubt your words, since I know that above everything Sheev Palpatine hates surprises and probably this surprise will cost your life."

"I told you that your room was bugged, didn't I? If he wanted to stop us, he already would do." Anakin scoffed at her words and she gave him a sly glance. "Are you worrying about me, Skywalker?"

Aforementioned male rolled his eyes.

"I'm a Jedi, I would hate if someone died for my sake."

"Millions died for your sake." She pointed out.

"Millions died for their freedom." He corrected. "I don't force anyone to fight alongside me. That's not Jedi's way."

Padmé uncomfortably shifted in her seat as a sharp pain decided that it was perfect time to settle in her back and start a new life there.

"So, you don't feel the responsibility for their deaths?"

"I didn't say that." Anakin grumbled. "Of course I feel the responsibility. I feel it everyday and I don't sleep many nights when I think about them. The only relief I find is that I know every single of them knew that there was a possibility for them to die." He turned his head from head. "I shouldn't say that."

"Why not?" Padmé questioned him. "Due me being your arch-nemesis' daughter?"

"Isn't that enough reason for me to keep my mouth shut?"

"Well," the girl relaxed in her seat. "I'm your worst enemy's daughter, but that doesn't automatically makes me your enemy."

"So, you're insinuating now, that you're my ally?"

"I'm not saying that." Padmé denied. Even if secretly they had same enemy, she would never have a Jedi as her ally. "I'm just saying that I'm not your foe."

"And why should I believe that?"

"Well, if not me, Father would fry you alive."

"If I remember correctly, he left me alive, because suddenly you had some wretched idea of me being broken. Is this going out part of your aforementioned plan?"

"Well, it's too late to ask that. But, no, I was just too bored in the court and too lazy to go in the Senate and listen to those Bantha poodoos."

"Language, Princess."

"Don't call me that."

"Whatever you say, Princess."

"Say that again and I'll kick you out."

"We are in the middle of cosmos, Princess."

"Ugh.."

* * *

Padmé was right. Her father didn't send Stormtroopers to make sieves from her and Skywalker. He was probably waiting them in Coruscant to fry them alive, but Padmé didn't care about that. She was just enjoying the fact that she was on her dearest planet with the love of her life and enjoying the warm beams of sun that highlighted her pale skin against her brown curls, pulling her in a warm embrace.

Anakin was lying beside her and watching how the lake reflected the sunbeams and glistened in their light. The woman deeply inhaled the scent of different flowers and fresh smell of the lake.

"In Tatooine we have two suns."

Padmé opened her eyes.

"You're from Tatooine?"

"I was raised there until the order took me."

"I'm sorry." She mumbled. "It must be very hard for you." Anakin turned his head to her to give her a dubious look and she hastily added. "Being taken away from your mother."

"Ah." He mumbled and glanced at the sharp light of sun. "It was and it wasn't."

Padmé rolled on her side and observed him.

"How?"

He shrugged.

"It was hard because, well, she was my mother. I always missed her. It wasn't, because finally I was free and I could try to free my mother."

"Did you do it?"

"Did I what?"

"Did you free your mother?"

"She was free and dead before I could anything."

Padmé shifted uncomfortably.

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be. It was years ago."

"Still..." She exhaled. "Tell me about Tatooine."

"It's covered with sand." Anakin described his planet simply.

"Sand." She repeated dumbly. "Is that everything you can say about it?"

"It says enough. Sand is coarse, rough, irritating and it gets everywhere. I couldn't sleep nights, because even my bed was full with sand. They were in my clothes, scratching my skin and they were in my eyes. In my childhood, it almost blinded me. Doesn't that say enough of how difficult is to live on that wretched planet?"

"Oh."

"Yes, oh."

"I'm sorry." Padmé apologized, since she had no idea what she was supposed to say. Clearly, her questions reminded him the early years of his life, that definitely weren't happy. She mentally kicked herself. She was future empress for Forces sake, trained in smooth talk since age ten and yet, every time she traded a word or two with Anakin Skywalker, her foot somehow ended in her mouth. What a mystery.

Anakin shrugged.

"I told you, don't be sorry. It was years ago and it wasn't your fault. You didn't find slavery, you didn't send me and my mother on that planet and you didn't covered it in sand."

"Still." Padmé mumbled and unconsciously reached for his hand. She momentary let it go as she noticed how the male flinched at her touch.

Anakin exhaled and crossed his hands under his head.

"I should be the one, who's sorry. I shouldn't leash out at you. It wasn't your fault. I'm sorry." Padmé sucked an air between her teeth at his words. "You're right. I shouldn't treat you like I treat your father. You're different from others."

The woman's lips curved into a small smile.

"Different?"

"Yes. Better. You're better than them. You aren't heartless like others."

The small smile vanished. He was wrong.

"Haven't you heard about my title? People calls me 'Heartless and Cold'"

Anakin gave her a puzzled look.

"Then why you stopped him and saved me?"

"Maybe it was due my rebellious phase."

The Jedi wrinkled his nose.

"So, it's a phase, it isn't real you?" Padmé giggled at his words. "Nah, I'm a Jedi. I feel lies and you're lying now." He looked straight in her eyes, his face somber, all trace of playfulness gone from his voice as he said. "Why didn't you let your father to finish me?"

Padmé bit her lip. Should she answer his question honestly? That would probably ruin everything. She wasn't stupid and she knew that Anakin wouldn't believe her words.

Lying was out of question too.

Maybe if she tells him the truth, he won't be frightened by her bluntness. He sees her true feelings. That she isn't pulling his leg. She really loves him. Loved him since childhood and she never touched a man, because she was infatuated with him and no man can hold a candle to Anakin Skywalker.

Maybe if she confessed her feelings, it would make everything better.

Padmé inhaled. Well, here goes nothing.

"When I stopped him... I had ulterior motives." She admitted.

One blonde eyebrow rose.

"Ulterior motives?"

Padmé sat up and nodded. Her eyes decided that her lap was most magnificent view as she continued her confession.

"I didn't want to see your death. I didn't want you to die."

Anakin slightly rose and supported himself on his elbows as he asked.

"Why?"

"Because..." Force damn it, woman. Admit it already. "I didn't want you to die, because I have feeling for you. Your death would hurt them. It would hurt them because my feelings aren't negative. They're positive. Definitely positive. I have positive feelings for you since childhood. I love you. Always loved you and always will. It may seems shallow for you, but I'm truly, deeply in love you. That's why I stopped my father from killing you. Hurting you." Padmé covered her face with her hands. "Force, I'm rambling."

Warm, calloused fingers carefully removed her hands from her face and Padmé glanced at the object of her love confessions to see his reaction. Her heart felt like someone squeezed it tightly as she saw Anakin's face - empty from any emotion.

A Jedi's face, perfected by using for years.

A Jedi, right. What a fool she was, thinking that a few days around her would make him to spit at his vows and break his code for her. What a fool she was for thinking that he would miraculously fall in love with her. Why would he? She wasn't a legendary hero. She wasn't a promised child that would bring peace and love for everyone.

She wasn't the Chosen One like him.

She was just a spoiled brat, at least in his eyes. Nothing would change that.

Stupid Jedi. Stupid Jedi Code. Stupid Anakin Skywalker for being perfect and stupid Padmé Palpatine for falling for him.

Stupid love and stupid heart for feeling it.

"Princess Palpatine." Anakin started but Padmé shook her head and squeezed her eyes shut to keep her tears from falling from them.

"Don't." Her voice was surprisingly steady. The woman opened her eyes when she was sure that she wasn't going to burst into tears. "I understand."

"I'm a Jedi, Princess Palpatine. Attachments are forbidden for me. I knew this since the Order took me."

"The Order isn't alive anymore." Padmé screamed at him. Anakin met her scream unflinchingly and that only fueled her anger. "Father killed them. He killed everyone."

"As long as I, my Master and Grandmaster Yoda live, the Order lives too."

The Heiress shook from anger.

"At least, pray tell, Master Jedi. If you weren't taken by the Order, would you love me?"

Anakin lowered his head.

"No."

"I can't hear you, Master Jedi."

The male raised his head and Padmé saw the anger in his eyes. He was annoyed by her questions.

Good.

"I said no, Your Highness." He spat. "You would be still the only daughter of Emperor and I would still fight against your father, against you. I would never bring myself to fall in love with you."

Padmé left how her strength left her.

"It's good to know." She said quietly and stepped away from him. "I'll be at house. Come there whenever you want. The collar is around your neck, so I really don't care." She mumbled and with fast, but steady steps lengthened the distance between them without glancing at him.

Padmé didn't break down and cried until her eyes were red and puffy. She just sat in silence until her comm beeped and Sabé's hologram appeared in front of her.

"We have her." The lieutenant of Imperial force and Padmé's secret second in command informed her. "She's cuffed and in a cell."

"Good." The Heiress answered curtly. "Work on her."

Sabé's eyes widened.

"My Lady?"

"Are you deaf, Lieutenant? I said, work on her until I come there. Beat her, whip her, whatever you want. Just don't kill her."

"But, My Lady..."

"Are you questioning me, Lieutenant?"

"Never, My Lady. It shall be done."

"Good. Now, go and do what I told you."

"Yes, My Lady."

The hologram vanished and Padmé closed her eyes. Anakin may hate her for this, but he didn't leave any other choices for her.

* * *

 **Ouch, Padmé, you really need to chill.**

 **And I know that some of you think that I'm a horrible person for teasing you. But you need to wait a little. I can't really make Anakin to jump in Padmé's bed. Like, I know that this is a fanfiction, but I wouldn't really believe, that Anakin would ever fall for a woman who he envisions as a some kind of jailer and slaver. He was slave as a child and he abhors slavery. Let's be honest, Anakin would sooner kill this Padmé than kiss her. But that would foul this story and end it too quickly. And I just couldn't resist to pull another stunt to piss off Palpatine. I just couldn't, sue me. I'm too weak.**

 **For Jedaerys - in both ways. Anidala is sexually safe and emotionally safe. If there's someone worried about Clovis, I assure you that he only have a political role here, that won't harm Anidala. No one will harm Anidala. I'm a woman of my word.**

 **End remember when I said that she was dark and manipulative? Well, that time is coming. I'll update as soon as I can, but if you have any questions, you always can PM me here or send a message to me on Tumblr (** **queenofheavensandstars dot tumblr dot com). I'm always open for your questions and always response them** **.**

 **Drop a review.**

 **Love you all, guys.**

 **Were**


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